The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced that Timothy William Hess, 43, of Tahlequah, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, followed by 2 years of supervised release for Conspiracy..

The charge arose from an investigation by the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

The defendant was indicted in August, 2012 along with Darren Glen Howard, 21, Hulbert.

The indictment alleged beginning on an unknown date and time but at least as early as October 25, 2011, and continuing through Dec. 15, 2011, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendants, did knowingly and intentionally conspire, confederate and agree with each other, and others to knowingly possess a firearm that had traveled in interstate commerce with reasonable cause to know the firearm was stolen.

The investigation revealed that on about Oct. 25, 2011, Howard went to Remington Valley Storage Units located in Tahlequah, and proceeded to cut off the lock of a storage unit and removed a gun safe containing firearms. At an unknown date and time, but no later than Dec. 15, 2011, Hess came into possession of those same firearms and then sold those firearms, to a Confidential Informant.

The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over today’s hearing. The defendant was ordered to report to the Bureau of Prisons, by noon on May 9, 2013 to begin serving his nonparolable sentence.